Elise Testone CD Release Concert

Last night the Charleston Music Hall did it's best to hold in the voice of Charleston's own Elise Testone, but it could hardly keep up. With a full 13 piece band that included horns, strings, and some serious percussion, Elise took to the stage like she owned it. The concert started with showing the music video of her first single "I Will Not Break." It portrayed images of Elise in scenic Lowcountry settings such as rowing through a tidal bayou, and on the flat shores of a beach. The video was incredibly well edited, and for a moment, we thought that was going to be the highest quality sounding music produced for the evening.

How wrong we were!

There's always the standard fans place on artists of how well they perform live. You may hear a friend explaining their experience at a concert of an artist you don't know or like and they'll always legitimize their description with "Yeah but have you heard them live? They're amazing live."

Elise Testone is amazing live.

She conquered almost every genera of music with laser precision with covers that ranged from Led Zeppelin to Michael Jackson to Sam Cooke. Even though the talents of the musicians backing her up could have completely covered up any shortcomings, Elise proved she could powerfully stand alone with a stripped down version of Eddie Vedder's "Society." She even brought up a few guest singers, and joined her onstage choir of her vocal students to humbly acknowledge other musicians that have helped pave the way for her here in Charleston. Between each song, she would express either how thankful she was for the audience's support, or call out a band member and list their talents and background. It was clear that Elise had not lost any humility, even as she sang to an almost sold out venue.

To say the crowd was enjoying themselves would be an understatement, as to the left of centerstage, a dance party of nearly 10 people broke out during her rendition of "Thriller." On top of an almost two hour long, high energy show, Elise came back out to a standing ovation for an encore, and then invited everyone to the second show she had scheduled later that night at the Pourhouse. It was an incredible performance. 

We see great things in store for Elise Testone in the coming future. With the soulful vocal prowess she has so obviously tamed, we haven't heard the last of this musical phenom, and as she made clear on stage, she'll never forget her Charleston.